The Loose Cannon
by Swallows Fly as Free as a Bird
Summary: Tennessee Kid Cooper doesn't let anything get in the way of his heists or business, but when a stranger comes to town and starts her own hideout there, will the two work this one out?
1. Arrival

The dust began had settled as the train disappeared further down the rail to its new destination, whistling its horns until it became faint noise in the background. The people who sat at the station had either boarded or just gotten off, leaving the station to the little town it inhabited. People of all shapes and sizes had come into town, a family of poor rabbits with their two children, the husband talking to the wife as he tried to convince her of the importance of this move.

"The gold out here Ally. The gold!"

"Herbert, we used all our money to get here! The children are tired and hungry, I'm tired and hungry! This plan seemed idiotic from the start..."

On the other side of life, two coyotes that wore suits and monocles were chatting about their lordship Lord Barker.

"Have you heard?"

"What James?"

"Lord Barker had acquired the ruby of Mexico!"

"My, my! He must have took it straight from the native's hands himself! That ruby is worth much money... be a shame if it was stolen..." The two coyotes chuckled mechanically at the idea, strolling out of the station as a chimp bellboy carried their luggage behind them. It was people of all classes and status that arrived into town. It was here among the crowd that a red panda of the most lovely shade of pale orange and well groomed in a blue with white designed dress sat with her arms crossed in frustration. Her little, black nose was stuck up, face scolding and visibly upset as she sat on the 10 to 12 trunks she had brought with her on this move. Meanwhile, a wolf of grey, silver fur stood beside her with a single suitcase at her feet. She lifted her black nose up to the air and breathed it all in with a smile, eyes bright as she already felt at home. She could smell the bread loafs that bakers had out for display, the perfumes of the rich women, and her favorite smell; flowers. The daises. petunias, tulips, but she mostly loved the fresh roses. Her mother always had them around the house when she was younger, it just made her feel less lost.

Compared to the red panda, she wore simple cowboy clothes. She had a beige choker around her neck, wearing dark, espresso colored pants with a beige vest and light maroon belly shirt, she fit just in with the people of the west. Smiling, she searched in her satchel for a moment until she pulled out a map of the town.

"What are we doing here?" Grumbled the red panda, the wolf chuckling a moment as she pointed to a red circle on the map.

"Why Mariah, we _are_ here for _you_." The red panda named Mariah scuffed, getting off her luggage and flattening her dress' skirt to look more presentable. "We have to find that hotel, and then we could start walking around, alright? Now stop being such a 'lil brat Mariah."

Unhappily, the red panda obliged and began to lift some of her trunks until two young men, a fox and falcon, decided to help the beautiful red panda. Mariah batted her eyelashes and flipped open her fan, hiding her face as she giggled at the two. The two men tipped their hat at her, grinning slightly as they balanced all of her bags in their hands. The wolf rolled her eyes and led the way of their small little group, Mariah charming the two men as they held her baggage for her. The streets were quiet at the moment, few people out and about doing their daily, early chores as the group went by. They would turn at the street and walk for a little, then turned to the right to see a brick and wooden building with a painted sign welcoming all new residents.

"The Summer Inn...?" Mariah chimed from the back, stating the name in more of a question then announcement. The wolf nodded and the four all trudged along to the front door, two chimps opening the door for them as the two young men collapsed as soon as they stepped in. Mariah turned around and thanked them both with a curt bow and smile as she then said goodbye.

"Oh, yes, can I get your name, miss..?"

"No, I'll let your imagination take that one. Bye boys." Mariah blew them a kiss and the two grinned stupidly, content as they strolled out of the building, arguing about who that kiss went to. The main receiving hall had a desk in the front, two staircases leading to the rooms on either side as the kitchen and dining room where concealed behind the desk. It was all made of fine wood, decorated with red carpets and a large painting of the ocean in display above the entrance. It was a romantic era painting, with the sun setting as waves crashed along the rocks and beach. The building was a rather grand place for a hotel, maybe was a manor back in its heyday as the wolf concluded to herself. She wasn't all that happy about Mariah flirting with those two, remembering the last incident Mariah had when she charmed a couple men at a party in New York... that didn't end well.

She then gave the red panda a knowing look and Mariah shrugged softly, sticking her nose up in a posh manner as she flipped her fan again and began to fan herself. Giving Mariah a slight glare and scolding, the wolf continued to the front desk. She saw that the concierge was an older rabbit, round little glasses under the wrinkles of her face hiding her little blue eyes as they welcomed the wolf with a kind smile.

"Hello Miss. Do you have a room reserved?" The red panda decided to speak up before the wolf could, raising her fan slightly.

"I believe it's the fanciest suite here, am I right?" The rabbit checked the log and then looked up to the wolf who's patience was being tested with Mariah's attitude.

"To a miss Rodriguez, am I correct?"

"Yes that's me!" The red panda snapped her fingers and the chimps obliged, struggling to go up the stairs with all her luggage as the wolf felt bad for them and decided to help out with holding a trunk or two to ease the load. Mariah snatched the key from the rabbit and smiled with an fake, insincere look. The rabbit eyed her carefully and returned the curt smile, mumbling something about being a brat as Mariah followed the chimps. They led the way to the room at the end of hallway, the windows spanning down the hall were all open to let the sunlight in, showing the streets below that were now alive with people. There were little tables against the wall every few rooms, a vase of flowers on each as paintings lined on the wall beside the doors. It was a warm, lovely place, it was clear in the wolf's head that this would be a nice little place to stay in. Mariah opened the door once the chimps had stopped to set all the luggage inside. Setting it neatly at the foot of the grand bed in the center, they left the room and turned to Mariah who was just about to shut the door as they left.

"Tip ma'am?" Mariah laughed and shut the door in their face, the wolf scolding again as she set her own little suitcase on the biggest bed and pulled out a dark beige cloak, black hat and red scarf putting it on quickly as she pocketed her money and holstered her gun belt around her waist.

"Now where are you going?" Mariah crossed her arms and made a face at the wolf, who merely looked up from under the brim of her hat with hard eyes.

"I want a drink, I'll be at the nearest saloon, understand?"

* * *

The scorching sun beat down over head to the small desert town below. The streets were bustling with people of all types and class. The working class carried various crates and bags to warehouses or buildings while the rest strolled the streets at their leisure. He gave them a glance, profiling each of them as potential heists but found none to be worth much. Children played cops and robbers with toy guns and cowboy hats, women gossiped at the nearby bench and went into hushed whispers as he passed by. Respectfully, he gave them a charming wink and tipped his hat.

"Ladies." They all giggled and continued chatting, blushing a deep shade of red as he continued on to the local saloon down the street. If it wasn't for the occasional officer strolling by, this would have been quite the enjoyable walk through town for him. Stopping in front of the saloon's wooden flapping doors, he could see the saloon was packed full as usual. He could see a group of bulls in the back playing poker, some turtles that looked like officials of some sort drinking at their own table, rabbits, pigs, everyone or anyone was in there. He causally walked in, not wanting any attention to himself and strolled up to the bar with a smirk playing on his lips as he ordered a drink. The bartender was an old hawk, an eyepatch over his left eye where a pink scar down his face was still pretty evident. He was pretty hard and strict around his bar, a no games, no nonsense kind of guy. The type Tennessee was usually bothering on a regular basis with his loose canon courage.

"Jack, be a pal and give me the usual."

"Cooper, I ain't your pal."

"I'll pay ya, relax Talon." Tennessee explained tiredly, eyes looking back into the face of the hawk as Talon then nodded and gave him a pint of root beer. Coolly, he flipped a gold coin on the counter and faced his back to the hawk. He studied all the faces in the bar, some old, some new, still the same problems.

Taking no note of anyone interesting, he looked over to the entrance curiously when he heard a pair of spurs clink loudly among the noise. Everyone went quiet for a moment, turning to the entrance with their deathly, uninviting stares as the person stepped inside.

Tilting his head slightly, he looked this figure up that vaguely avoided the full sunlight. The music had stopped, no one moved an inch and the air was so tense you could cut it with a knife. Pausing, the figure looked up from under the brim of their hat to the counter and empty spot that was beside Tennessee. He could barely make out a face in the darkness. He wanted to see who this mysterious apparition was, with such guts to silence a whole saloon full of cut throats, thieves, and nobles. Calmly, the figure began to stroll over to the counter and pulled up the empty seat beside him. He adjusted slightly to watch the figure and got a close look at it. They wore a dark beige cloak, gun holstered at their waist and a scarf shielding their face from view. The brim of the hat hid their eyes, which Tennessee caught a glance and saw they were the color of golden hazel. The stranger dragged the wooden seat across the floor, the screeching noise ringing loudly throughout the saloon as they folded their hands neatly on the counter and waited to be served by the hardened hawk.

"What'll be stranger?" Talon asked, more in a statement then a question as the figure cleared their voice. The anticipation to hear the stranger's voice was tense. Everyone was ready to burst by the time the stranger had settled. Tennessee was even on the edge of his seat, eyeing this figure carefully when with a movement of their hand they pulled the scarf down slightly.

"One root beer please." The bar erupted with laughter. It was as if someone let laughing gas loose in a saloon full of tense customers who just had their first laugh. The laughter was deafening, everyone laughing at their own stupidity and fear as they realized what this 'stranger' was.

It was a woman. A girl. In a saloon. A girl. Woman. Female. Not male.

And here she was.

The music began to play again, everyone returning back to their activities as Talon slid a root beer over to her. Tennessee was silent the whole time, staring at her blankly before he realized she was staring right back with an annoyed look on her face.

"Well, you gonna say something or keep starin' at me like an idiot? Draw a picture while you at it. Lasts longer." He snapped out of it and scratched the back of his head embarrassedly. She had grey, silver fur of a wolf with these piercing eyes and brunette hair falling over her shoulder. She was as lovely as a sunrise after a summer storm to him. Realizing he must have looked odd to her, he turned on the charm and have her a wink.

"Oh, sorry lil' lady."

"What's the matter with ya? Never seen a woman before?" She was unaffected by his charm. Instead, she rolled her eyes and went on to drink her pint in one sitting. He looked on admiringly. He ain't never seen a woman like her drink like that. Never. She paid her tab and got up, tipping her black cowboy hat respectfully in thanks to Talon before she turned around and began to walk to the entrance without a word. As she neared the door, another girl with a pretty face and makeup on showed up with an worried look on her face. She looked beautiful with sharp blue eyes and the red fur of a red panda. Tennessee watched as the two chatted momentarily without his eyes leaving the girl he met moments ago until the two completely disappeared from sight.

When he realized she had left, he paid his tab and quickly left the rowdy bar. He began searching the streets for her black hat. Looking left and right until he saw her far down main street strolling with her panda companion. From this distance, he could see the panda wore a pink dress opposed to the wolf's cowboy clothes. He calmly weaved his way through the crowds and slowly caught up to the two to the point where he could rest under the shade of a local shop. Deciding to make a better first impression, he leaned on the wall and cleared his throat loudly enough for them to turn around. The red panda was the first to see who made the noise, the other girl shaking her head as if she already knew who it was. He smirked and tipped his hat to the panda, who flipped open her fan blushing slightly to hid her smile and nudged for the wolf to see Tennessee coolly leaning against the wall. Sighing, she turned around and met his eyes with a curious yet annoyed look on her face and Tennessee could see her a lot better in this light. She was as beautiful as he thought. The red panda wasn't that bad looking either, but she was a show girl by the looks of her. But not the wolf. No, she looked like she meant business.

"May I help you there mister? Or you gonna stare at me some more?" Tennessee grinned and chuckled, emerging from the shade and stepping out to introduce himself properly to her. He directed his name to the wolf, but by the looks of the red panda she was so entranced she wouldn't care if he was talking to the ground.

"Name's Tennessee Kid Cooper. Pleasure to meet you." He offered his hand for her to take, but instead the panda gave him her hand and eagerly told him their names.

"I'm Mariah Rodriguez, this here is Lana. But hello there Mr. Cooper." She spoke so fast, he barely caught the wolf's name. Lana huh. He brought the panda's soft hand to his lips and kissed it, keeping eye contact with Lana the whole time as she boredly looked on.

"Charmed to be in the presence of such lovely ladies." He let Mariah's hand fall from his as he offered it to Lana but she shook her head and gave him a fake smile.

"Well not for long, sorry Mr. Cooper I must really run along now. Mariah will take care of ya for now." She turned around and continued her path down the street, Tennessee grinning as he watched her turn at the bend and disappear.

Now, what a woman.

He linked arms with the red panda named Mariah and kept his gaze at that corner she disappeared from momentarily before looking at the lovely Mariah.

"Tell me Mariah. Where have you and Ms. Lana been staying in our sleepy little town?"

* * *

**Admit it. You love Tennessee. We all do. It's just impossible to not love him. Okay, this is still Thieves In Time, but right before the whole timeline shift. Yes, in time Sly and the gang will show up but that's later! Okay, tell me if I should continue or not, thanks loves!**

**:)**

**PS- I drew the picture in the cover, it took me forever but it has all the characters :D Lana is the main one on the left. Mariah is in the corner, but yes, I drew this. I'm so proud of it :)**

**PPS- I rewrote this chapter, mainly to fix some grammatical errors and add some minor details. Hope you like it, I'm putting a lot of love into this story! From my own drawings to more detail and time, I hope you like it! :) thanks loves**


	2. Author's Note and Advice Needed

Some help loves.

Alright! It's great you all love this story (well most of you do :)) and I am now stuck. Yes.

I'm stuck on chapter two.

And this story. You see, I wanted this to be one big story, but now I'm thinking about making this a prequel to the Thieves In Time story and the aftermath of that. (Another two Fanfics all for this character, story line, plot, blah.) And I think that would make the most sense. I don't think having a big 56 something chapter fanfic is smart when I could divide it all :)

So please, leave ideas on that! I have the three covers for all those stories drawn and colored, now I need some input! Should this be a prequel- ( a rather nice one too don't worry I want it to be long, a good 30 chapters or so) or should I put it all in one. I kinda like the prequel idea because I have a drawing and a plot totally different from the Thieves in Time story.

So drop a review, tell me what you think, what I should do, and HELP ME WITH CHAPTER TWO I DONT KNOW WHAT TO WRITE BECAUSE UGH WRITER'S BLOCK.

So thanks loves! :)

~Swallows


	3. A Hero

A fire had started in the center of the village, the council men sat around in a giant circle around the fire as the medicine woman explained what she saw. The faces were stoic, eyes hard as they watched Hehewuti the medicine woman chant and call out to the spirits. The old hawk had a dress of duckskin on, beads of the brightest color and designs stitched all over as white swan feathers danced up and down from her necklace of beads, precious stones and feathers. Maraca like instruments shook in her hands at a steady beat, the drums playing in the background as she continued to sing and dance around the fire. Her old wrinkled face looked like a raisin as she softly swayed by the fire, crow's eyes crinkling as her headband rose up and down as she chanted and moved her face. Her old dark brown feathers were enlightened and colored a bright orange, giving her an aura around her.

"Oh spirits, help us in our time of need. The Northerners have taken our treasure, killed our warriors, burned our village, please great spirit show us the way." Around the fire, the chief sat in his animal skinned throne, the coarse, multiple furs of his enemies. At his right was his young son, the fearless Chayton, a young falcon with brown feathers and green eyes. His eyebrows draped over his eyes as he squinted, watching Hehewuti with careful observation, as if he would need to repeat what she was doing. To the chief's left, his youngest son, the deep thinking and philosophical one, Powhatan, sat with his brother and father. Uninterested, he didn't watch Hehewuti but instead idled with three beads stitched into his deer skin vest. He thought deeper into what happened the weeks before, how their whole world had changed because of his mistake.

Further down, was Bear, the ferocious Grizzly of the Mountain tribe. His face was scarred, two old, pink scars running down either of his cheeks and a scar running across his face from his left eye to his chin. He sat cross legged, bow balancing on his lap as he rested his hands on his knee and watched dutifully. Beside him was Orange Scales, the iguana from the neighboring Cavern tribe. He had spots of orange and yellow all over his body, old burns that had healed and earned him the name Orange Scales. He had black eyes, pupils hidden in the mass of black to make it look like he had big eyes. To others, he looked innocent with his big eyes, and he used this as an advantage to strike to unsuspecting victims. Bear and Orange Scales had come for one reason.

The glory.

All brave warriors had a quest, rarely was it one of such importance or opportunity like this chance. To help the Healing tribe was truly amazing, the tribe of falcons and hawks rarely needed outside help. They knew if they were successful, they would be acclaimed in all the tribes throughout the west and their name would be of legend. If they failed, they would be lost in history and story telling. Bear and Orange Scales were both determined to be apart of legend, vowing to make their rival tribes proud.

Aside from the outsiders, numerous falcon or hawk warriors and advisors from the tribe sat around the fire as well, ready to discuss what had to be done. Hehewuti stopped dancing and looked up to the dark night sky, the stars twinkling over her in a landscape of pitch black and glimmering white. The full moon shone down to the village, the old medicine woman calling out to it for help as then more women came from the tents and joined in her chants. Among the wives, a beautiful falcon Native princess of the name Aponi was dancing, her voice melodic and warm, clear as day over all others singing. Everyone listened to her singing, Hehewuti and the others quieting down to let Aponi finish the chant and prayers as the drums continued to beat.

"Oh father sun and moon, listen to our plea, help your people in times of need, come send your bravest hero, whoever it may be..."

* * *

"Name's Tennessee Kid Cooper ma'am." He stared across to the red panda, tipping his hat politely as he cleared his throat and continued. "I was born out at a homestead, my mom and pop died years ago." Mariah leaned from over the booth closer to him, taking his hand in hers and squeezing it for comfort. Tennessee took a glance at their hands before staring deep into her eyes to read her expression. Her eyes were big with pity, face in understanding as she pouted slightly in sadness. He sighed slightly at the memory of his family, shaking his was resignedly as he continued. "It happens in life I 'uppose. Besides, they're in a better place now I'm sure. As for me, I'm just a traveler around these parts..."

He spent the whole afternoon with the red panda, Mariah. Apparently, Lana and Mariah had just came in from the east. The two of them wanting to start the red panda into show business as a singer and show girl. He found it hard to believe that Lana, the mysterious wolf he had met earlier that day, didn't have that much of a story behind her but from what Mariah told him she wasn't as mysterious as she seemed. She offered a short and blunt biography of the silver haired wolf, not wanting to dwell on the subject for too long. Simply that Lana was born in the west somewhere, traveled to New York when she was at the proper age to start her own life, met Mariah and then became her manager.

He listened carefully into Mariah's story, trying to fill the gaps she was leaving about both of them. Tennessee could already tell that Mariah was a bit self-centered, quick to keep the story on herself. She exaggerated her life greatly, telling Tennessee about her 'lavish' childhood, to how when she was a teen she sang in school a lot. He noticed something however that she never mentioned her parents. She talked about her best friend that had a weird crooked tooth showing when she smiled or a gentlemen who had dandruff in his hair back in New York, but never a single description about her parents. She described living in a large house in the countryside, with horses and pets, a nanny, a tutor, but no parents. He knew it would be rude to ask, seeing as he wouldn't want to talk much on his parents either. Mainly because they died years ago, and Tennessee tried to forget how his father died.

There was a silence in the bar except for the occasion chatter among its patrons. Quiet enough that you could hear the bar doors open and close constantly with the hinges creaking and the wood rubbing against the walls. He would occasionally glance over and see the usual customers of the saloon. Most of them were workers from the nearby mine, some were troubled law officers, and even a couple high class gentlemen talking of business. At this particular glance, he saw her standing there with arms crossed. She wore her black hat, red cloth as a shirt, a beige vest over it with her maroon red pants and tan boots. Even dressed as a cow girl, trying to look as masculine as she could, she was still quite a looker. There was some chatter at her arrival, some men staggering over to her and tried to talk to her as smoothly as they could over their slurs and hiccups.

"Hi there 'lil lady." The tallest, gray wolf of the group managed to say. She raised a brow boredly and watched as the five of them tried to corner her but she was quicker then them. She kept backing away as they advanced, going as far as to leaving the saloon with five guys following her. Tennessee hopped to his feet and was about to run out there to help her and take care of those guys when Mariah grabbed his arm and stopped him with an annoyed look on her face at his evident care for Lana's safety. After all, it was Lana he was worried about. That silver furred wolf was more than capable of herself.

"Wait a little moment, that's all. Relax." She explained, pulling Tennessee slowly back into the booth beside her. He eyed the door carefully with a restless edge, hand resting on his precious revolver just itching to pull the trigger. She tried to calm him down by resting her head on his shoulder, but his whole body was stiff and made it uncomfortable. He waited a couple moments, but Lana came back with a smirk on her face having left the saloon and then slid back inside stealthily while the five guys wandered around the street trying to find her in their disoriented state. Brushing off any little dust off her shirt with her beige gloves, she coolly strolled over to Mariah when she saw she still had Tennessee with her all this time. Slipping into the empty seat across from the couple, she neatly folded her hands on the table and watched them cautiously. She immediately knew from Mariah's face she had developed a certain infatuation with the raccoon, but Lana remained silent and continued to watch this 'Cooper' figure.

"You still with him? Damn Mariah. I figured after hearing your life story he would have died of boredom, but what a keeper you got there." A compliment. Amazed or sarcastically, Lana grinned and leaned back, Mariah rolling her eyes slightly at the comment. Lana glanced around the bar, assessing the whole place as she caught the small stage beside the bar area. She made a slight face, it was too small for Mariah to perform there, but it was the only one in town. Tennessee sat up, Mariah having to leave the comfort of his shoulder as he focused on the cowgirl sitting with her arms crossed to the pair. "Such a cute 'lil couple you two make."

"Now, now, Ms. Lana, no need to be jealous."

"Jealous? Ha! You wished _Mr. Tennessee Cooper._" In the way she said his name, she added a lot of emphasis in a way to tell him she knew about the Cooper name all throughout the west. It sent a slight chill up his spine, almost as if he grew nervous at her knowledge of his infamy. Then, she stood up and was about to leave the pair alone but Tennessee was quick to leave Mariah's side and hopped to his feet to stand in front of her.

"Well, you sure are showing it." She came in closer to him, looking straight into his caramel gold eyes with all seriousness. They both gave each other a respectful understanding of each other's positions, a feeling in his gut that Lana wasn't all that she seemed to be. He got a better look of her face, and was proud that he was right all this time. Her eyes were golden hazel as they searched his for a moment. Satisfied or annoyed, she backed away and gave Mariah a knowing glance.

"Don't have too much fun with your new _boyfriend_, yeah?" The red panda was behind Tennessee, giving Lana a confident wink and nod before the wolf walked out of the saloon without a word, leaving the pair alone. Tennessee wanted to see where she went all this time but Mariah took his hand and sat him back in the booth.

* * *

It was nighttime. The sun had set about an hour ago, and Mariah couldn't get that raccoon out of her head. Tennessee may have said goodbye hours ago, promising to see her first show if she had one coming soon but he was fresh in her mind. That afternoon stroll she had with him earlier replayed in her head, over and over as she thought more and more on him. As soon as she saw him, she felt entranced with those golden caramel eyes, light brown fur, that charming grin...

Feeling a wave of heat rush to her cheeks, the red panda tried fanning herself so she wouldn't blush so much. She also did it to hide her obvious feelings from her companion, Lana. Lana was casually at her side, hat brimmed over her eyes so you couldn't see her face, her hands in her pant pockets as she thought hard on her next move. They had arrived, but when and where would Mariah perform? The town was small, with only a saloon not worthy enough for even a couple clowns. Nevertheless, it was a way of getting food and money, maybe some experience for Mariah. Experience for performing in front of a Western audience for the first time. The two strolled along the near empty streets, Mariah's green dress shining a soft, pale color as a parasol hung around her arm and fan gripped in her other hand to fan herself. Most of the town's citizens were either at home eating supper or in the local saloon getting a drink after a long day working at the mines. The pair stayed quiet the whole walk, the clinking of Lana's spurs and Mariah's fanning the only noise between them before Lana broke the silence slowly.

"What do you think of that Tennessee fella?" She asked her red panda companion, who immediately began to fan herself furiously as she tried to hide her cheeks that were becoming a shade of light pink to a blush red. From the look Mariah had on her face, Lana already knew the answer.

"Oh."

"My, Lana, don't tell him! Please?" A mischievous grin spread on her face, this information could finally put Mariah in check. It wasn't bad if some secrets could keep people in line, it's just a 'formal understanding'. The red panda widened her eyes in horror and gripped Lana's arm in pleading, shaking it slightly with big eyes as she tried to convince Lana to keep her secret.

This was all too entertaining for the wolf.

"Mariah..." She wouldn't let go, eyes searching hers with pouty lips and puppy eyes. Lana tried to shake her off, chuckling a bit at her desperate attempts. They stopped in front of one of the various shops in town, the tailors. Inside the lights were on, streaks of light shone from the windows and offered some visibility to the outside. The thin wisps of light streaked over Lana's face, clearly glimmering and showing the beauty of her eyes as they watched Mariah carefully. The red panda wouldn't listen, holding onto and pulling at her arm in her direction. "Oh come on, Mariah please!"

"Now now ladies you shouldn't be out at a time like this..." The voice in front of them explained, a chuckle emanating from the person as both women looked to see who it was. At first Lana was ready to have her gun drawn, hand resting dangerously close to her hip as she looked to see who the voice belonged to. They were met with the warm, friendly eyes of a handsome coyote standing with his arms crossed in mock scolding. The gold star that was pinned to his breast pocket of his vest twinkled under the moonlight, his hat raised enough to just barely see his face. From this angle, it was it was hard to tell specific details about him. With the moonlight shining down, Lana could see an attractive yet not entirely vague face. With possibly blue eyes she was staring into, the three of them stood at a standstill. Mariah let go immediately and flashed a charming grin, the coyote coming closer to introduce himself and to get a better look of the two.

"Name's John. John Coyote..." He paused for a moment, watching the two of them carefully as if a big plot twist was coming. "Deputy John Coyote." He added proudly, offering his hand to Mariah. The red panda poshly gave him her gloved hand, allowing him to bring it to his lips.

"My, you are lovely miss." Mariah pulled her hand back and smiled artificially, having heard that dozens of times before. The coyote wouldn't leave his gaze off the show girl, even when he then addressed Lana, he stole glances at her. Rolling her eyes at this, Lana shook his hand quickly and was very curt with the introduction. He barely got a grip on her hand, realizing she wasn't one for the fancy hand kissing introductions or have the patience for it.

"Lana, and the lady beside me is Mariah Rodriguez." She said boredly, in a blunt, uninterested tone as then the coyote locked eyes with Mariah. He grinned at learning her name, never seeing anyone as pretty as he around town ever before. He knew from the women around town that there were some new arrivals, but he didn't expect someone of such beauty.

"My, my, your name is as pretty as your face Ms. Mariah." Mariah flipped her fan open and hid her smile, carefully watching him with her almond shaped blue eyes in a charming way.

"Oh yes, completely agree." Lana added sarcastically, Mariah shooting her a quick glare before bowing graciously to John and excusing her and Lana.

"Pleasure to have met you Deputy Coyote." He tipped his hat and glanced at both women as Lana then was the first to walk away. The Deputy saw this as his chance and asked Mariah one last thing.

"You two look familiar, have I seen you before?"

* * *

**Was this short? Was this chapter good? I wanted to introduce a couple more character's, of course they will be apart of the bigger story but I'll build up to that.**

**So! A couple native tribes in need of a hero, Lana knows about Tennessee, who thinks the silver haired wolf isn't all that she truly seems, and the sheriff's deputy has seen those two faces before! **

**WHAT WILL HAPPEN OOOOH THE CLIFFHANGERS!**

**Reviews are greatly appreciated, thanks loves! :) 5 reviews! I'm so proud :')**

**~Swallows**

**PS- I will try to make each chapter 3 thousand words or longer, the most I've written :P so I hope you all like it, I'm putting a lot of love into this.**


End file.
